Nathan and Family Are Safe

A word of thanks to all the people who are concerned about Todd, Carla, and Nathan being in Jamaica with Hurricane Dean headed right toward them. They are not in Jamaica. They are safe and sound in Plant City. If you read the previous post, you will remember that they came home last weekend for a missions retreat in Texas. They returned to Florida last Friday night. They were scheduled to return to Jamaica on Monday, but of course the airports are shut down. Their return flight has been rescheduled for Wednesday, but Carla doubts the airports will be open even then. I'm not complaining. It has been great to have the Hoods home for a while. We've been eating out a lot, and Nathan and I went to see Underdog yesterday. He has also been enjoying time to play with his cousin Jacob and friend Seth. Carla plans to bring him out to visit me at school one day this week like she used to do two years ago before Nathan started school himself.

Thanks again to everyone who has been concerned for my family's safety. And yes, Rhoda, I am still painting.

The Bad News: Still Painting! . . . The Good News: NATHAN IS COMING HOME!

I painted all day yesterday, and the kitchen/dining area is basically done. It looks great! I'm very pleased with the way it is turning out. So why did it take so long to complete one average room? It's not the painting. In fact, the walls take the shortest time to roll, but the edging and trim take FOREVER!

Not only that, it's the other precious tasks that go along with the painting such as having to take down the kitchen window blinds, remove the brackets so I can get complete paint coverage, re-caulk the kitchen window, put the blinds in the bathtub to wash away 19 years of dust, Windex the windows and window frame, re-install the blinds brackets, and finally re-hang the blinds.

On to the refrigerator! I had to "roll" the refrigerator out, all the while dreading what I would find behind it, vacuum and scrub the tiles behind the frig, scrape old caulk from the last time the house was painted between the floor and trim, and try to remove green oxidation that I assume dripped from copper tubing under the refrigerator (it didn't come up).

For the rest of the kitchen/dining area I had to take pictures off the wall, remove all the light switch plates and electrical outlet face plates, take down my antique fire extinguisher, take down a dusty shelf and the dusty kitsch on it, tape EVERYTHING so I could edge and paint the walls, remove the tape and re-tape so I could do the trim, remove the trim tape, re-hang the pictures, return the switch plates and face plates, re-hang the fire extinguisher, dust the shelf and kitsch, re-hang the shelf, rearrange the kitsch, touch-up where the tape ripped off the paint, scrape paint off the tile by the trim, and . . . you get the picture! Surprisingly, one of the easiest jobs was edging between the walls and the lovely popcorn ceiling. It was almost fun, but not quite. They say popcorn ceilings cover a multitude of sins, but I say popcorn ceilings are a SIN!

Today I am looking forward to painting the laundry closet. NOT! That involves moving out the washer and dryer, taking down a shelf and everything on it, and scrubbing more tile. Intercede for me please! Honestly, it sounds like a lot of work, and it is, but I'm just taking it in stride. What gets done, gets done, and what doesn't can wait until tomorrow. I'm really glad I decided to paint. It's going to make my house look so much better when it's done.

Now on to the BEST news! Nathan (and Todd and Carla) are coming through Tampa tonight on their way to a missions conference in Texas. Mama and Daddy will be going with them when they fly out tomorrow morning. They return next weekend, and we will have a couple of days together before they head back to Jamaica. It goes without saying that I am so looking forward to seeing my nephew and spending some time together, and most of all getting some SUGAR! The best in the world!

I'm Painting My House (Inside)

I spent the better part of yesterday picking out interior paint. I'm tired of looking at these beige, scuffed walls. I'm using KILZ one-coat guarantee paint from Wal-Mart. The living room, kitchen, hall, guest bedroom, and office will be Dulce De Leche (tan), the master bath, Wetlands (mossy green), the hall bath Canary (yes, it's yeller!), with Autumn Breeze (cream) trim throughout. Who comes up with these color names?

Plant City Wal-Mart did not have enough base paint on hand to mix my colors, so I had to run to North Lakeland last evening. After I ate supper, I got started on the hall bath because it was a small space. First, I removed the old caulking in the crack between the wall and the vanity. The caulking removal tool worked okay. Then, I ran a bead of caulk and used the smoothing tool along the crack. Now that little gadget worked great! You've never seen a more straight, smooth, and uniform caulk job. It was almost fun. I guess I didn't realize how much trim and edging and how many tight spaces there were in that little bathroom, but in the process I learned that blue tape works better than the edging tool for if you want clean lines. All in all, the painting went pretty fast. The paint is thick, so there are few drips, and true to its claim the KILZ paint gives great coverage.

I'm going to start on the master bath this morning, then attack the rest of the house. I've got three full days to finish the job before I have to report for work on Friday. Yes, Friday! Just one more great decision by the Hillsborough District School Board. But that's another topic for another time. I need to get off this computer and get busy. I'll try to post pictures later.